On the 22nd, Softbank Hawks announced that pitcher Xu Ruoxi from Wei Chuan of the Chinese Professional baseball (CPBL) will join the team.
The right-handed pitcher, with a fastball speed of 158 km/h, was named MVP in the 2011 Taiwan Series. At just 25 years old, he was aiming to take on an overseas challenge after the end of this season. Several major league teams showed strong interest, and Nippon-Ham and others were also in negotiations to acquire him in Japan, but Softbank Hawks won the bidding war with a favorable offer estimated to be worth more than 1.2 billion yen over three years. The right-handed pitcher visited Fukuoka in November and was introduced to the team's facilities. Chairman Wang also attended a dinner and expressed his enthusiasm. With Arihara, who led the team in wins for two consecutive years, now a free agent, Xu, who is expected to perform well as a starter, being the team's top priority for reinforcements this offseason.
◆Comment from Seo Ruoxi
"I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Fukuoka Softbank Hawks for evaluating me, trusting me, and giving me the opportunity to challenge myself at a higher level. I am extremely honored to be a part of a team with such a long history and proven track record. I will do my best in daily practice and games to meet the expectations of the team. I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to everyone at the Ajinomoto The Dragons, who have given me the opportunity to grow and provided me with tremendous support since I began my career as a professional baseball player. My roots will remain with The Dragons, and I will strive to grow even further in this new environment, and to repay the support of everyone who has supported me up until now with my play."
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